The Medium Term Fiscal Plan(MTFP)should be reformed and made the statement of commitment rather than a statement of intent.

FRBM Act need to be amended to mention the nature of shocks which shall require targets relaxation.

Both centre and states should conclude 'Grand Bargain' to implement the model Goods and Services Act(GST).To incentivise the states, the commission recommended a sanction of the grant of Rs 50000 crore.

Initiatives to reduce the number of Central Sponsored Schemes(CSS)and to restore the predominance of formula based plan grants.

States need to address the problem of losses in the power sector in time bound manner.

August 14, 2012

Indirect Uses

Prevention and control of soil erosion: Forests play a significant role in the prevention and control of soil erosion by water and wind. The destruction of forest cover leads to increased runoff of rain water and its diminished seepage and storage in soil. The structure of the soil suffers, runoff increases and loosens the soil, which is carried away to other regions. The fertility of the soil is thus lost, and it becomes barren and unproductive.

Flood control: Roots of the trees absorb much of the rain water and use it slowly during the dry season. Thus they regulate the flow of water and help in controlling the floods. Trees also check the flow of water. With the increased rate of deforestation, the frequency and the intensity of floods in the area also increases.

Checks on spread of deserts: Sand particles are blown away by strong winds in the deserts and are carried over long distances, thus resulting in the spread of deserts. The roots of trees and plants bind the sand particles and do not permit their easy transportation by winds. In long run, the forests add humidity to the atmosphere and further help in checking the spread of deserts.

Increase in soil fertility: The fallen leaves of trees add humus to soil after their decomposition. Thus, forests help in increasing the fertility of soil.

Effect on temperature: Forests have a far reaching effect on climate. They ameliorate the extremes of climate by reducing the heat in summers and cold in winter. They also influence the amount of rainfall by lowering the temperature of moisture laden winds and increase the relative humidity of the air through the process of transpiration. They reduce the surface velocity of winds and retard the process of evaporation.

August 11, 2012

The revenue obtained by the government from sources other then tax is called Non-Tax Revenue. The sources of non-tax revenue are :-

1. Fees

Fees are another important source of revenue for the government. A fee is charged by public authorities for rendering a service to the citizens. Unlike tax, there is no compulsion involved in case of fees. The government provides certain services and charges certain fees for them. For example, fees are charged for issuing of passports, driving licenses, etc.

2. Fines or Penalties

Fines or penalties are imposed as a form of punishment for breach of law or non fulfillment or certain conditions or for failure to observe some regulations. Like taxes, fines are compulsory payments without quid pro quo. But while taxes are generally imposed to collect revenue. Fines are imposed as a form of punishment or to prevent people from breaking the law. They are not expected to be a major source of revenue to the government.

3. Surplus from Public Enterprises

The Government also gets revenue by way of surplus from public enterprises. In India, the Government has set up several public sector enterprises to provide public goods and services. Some of the public sector enterprises do make a good amount of profits. The profits or dividends which the government gets can be utilized for public expenditure. There is some sort of quid-pro-quo in the case of surplus from public enterprises. This is because, the public gets goods and services, and the government gets prices, and consequently profits from selling such goods and services.

4. Special assessment of betterment levy

It is a kind of special charge levied on certain members of the community who are beneficiaries of certain government activities or public projects. For example, due to a public park in a locality or due to the construction of a road, people in that locality may experience an appreciation in the value of their property or land. Thus, due to public expenditure, some people may experience 'unearned increments' in their asset holding. Betterment levy is like a tax because it is a compulsory payment, but unlike a tax, in case of betterment levy there is some element of quid pro quo.

5. Grants and Gifts

Gifts are Voluntary contributions by individuals or institutions to the government. Gifts are significant source of revenue during war and emergency.

A grant from one government to another is an important sources of revenue in the modern days. The government at the Centre provides grants to State governments and the State governments provide grants to the local government to carry out their functions.

Grants from foreign countries are known as Foreign Aid. Developing countries receive military aid, food aid, technological aid, etc. from developed countries.

6. Deficit Financing

Deficit means an excess of public expenditure over public revenue.

This excess may be met by borrowings from the market, borrowings from abroad, by the central bank creating currency. In case of borrowing from abroad, there cannot be compulsion for the lenders, but in case of internal borrowings there may be compulsion. The government may force various individuals, firms and institutions to lend to it at a much lower rate than the market would have offered.

August 5, 2012

• United Provinces of Kisan Sabha, founded in 1918.• The Andhra Provincial Ryots Association was started in 1928.• Bihar Kisan Sabha in 1929 by Swami Sahajanand Saraswathi.• The formation of the Congress Socialist Party in 1934.• The All-India Kisan Sabha was formed in April 1936 at Lucknow with Swami Shajanand as President and N.G. Ranga as General-Secretary.• The first session of the All-India Kisan Sabha was addressed by Jawaharlal Nehru. Others participants included Ram Manohar Lohia, Sohan Singh Josh, Indulal Yagnik, Jaya Prakash Narayan, Acharya Narendra Deva, Kamal Sarkar.• A Kisan Sabha manifesto was finalized and this was adopted by the Congress at Faizabad session.• The Kisan Sabha held its 2nd session along with the Faizpur Congress Session in 1936.Peasant Movements during Indian National Congress Ministries (1937-39) • In Bengal, Kisan Sabha activities included a successful agitation against Canal Tax in Burdwan, and the Hat Tola movement in North Bengal.• This was against a levy collected by the landlords from peasants at hat (weekly market).• In Punjab, Kisan Sabhas emerged in the early 1930s through the efforts of Naujawan Bharat Sabha, Kirti Kisan, the Congress and Akali acitivists. • 2 Major issues were resettlement of land revenue and increase in canal tax or water rate. • Major struggles broke out, especially after the Haripur session of the Congress in 1938, in Jaipur, Kashmir, Rajkot, Patiala, Hyderabad, Mysore, Travancore etc.

• As a result of the Communist influence on trade unions, "1928 was a year of intense industrial unrest".

All-India Trade Union Congress (AITUC)

• The early leaders of the AITUC included Lala Lajpat Rai, N.M. Johsi and V.V.Giri.

• In 1929, Communists succeeded in securing the approval of the AITUC to its affiliation to the Third International in Moscow. This lead to a split; the moderates, led by N.M. Joshi, left the AITUC and formed the All-India Trade Union Federation (AITUF).

• Another split in the AITUC in 1931, when communists formed the Red Trade Union Congress (RTUC)..

• National Trade Union Federation (NTUF) was formed in 1933.

• In 1936, the AITUC and NTUF came closer together. In 1938, both held a commission session at Nagpur. Unity was finally achieved in 1940 – 11 years after the first split – when NTUF was dissolved and its trade unions affiliated themselves to the AITUC.

• The Bombay Industrial Disputes Act of 1938 and the Shops and Establishments Act of 1939, were passed by the Congress ministries.

• A conference of a large number of trade unions was held in Lahore in Nov 1941, which decided to set up a new central trade union organisation called the Indian Federation of Labour.

• Indian National Trade Union Congress (INTUC) established in May 1944.

• One reason for establishing a new central trade union organisation i.e., INTUC was that the AITUC, after the Nagpur unity in 1938, had been dominated by the Communists.

July 12, 2012

It is hereby informed that the requisition for Change of Examination Centre will beallowed upto 06/08/2012 for Mains (conventional type) examination under Group-I Services vide Notification No. 15/2011 and 18/2011.

July 10, 2012

The desire of the last Nizam to force India to accept a second partition, after the birth of Pakistan, make Hyderabad the third dominion of the sub-continent, and the dream of building an Islamic nation alongside Pakistan, remained only a dream, and his revolt against the mighty Indian Government ended in a whimper.

The Nizam was a man of dreams. At one stage, he even negotiated with Portugal to take Goa to open a naval front, and sent the Commander-in-Chief of his Army, El-Edroos, to purchase arms from Czechoslovakia to fight the invincible Indian Army. But all his plans did not materialise, and his feeble resistance ended within five days after a column of the Indian Army marched into the Nizam-held areas in September 1948.

The Nizam also tried to seek Pakistan's support, but they came to an end after Mohammed Ali Jinnah declared that he would not "endanger Pakistan for a handful of effete nobility". Despite this, the Nizam and his cohorts were under an illusion that Pakistan would be forced to come to their aid if the Indian Government declared war against Hyderabad.

Incidentally, India timed the "Police Action" against the Nizam a day after Jinnah died on September 12, 1948. The timing of the Indian strike took not only the Nizam but also his supporters in Pakistan, and the British by surprise.

The end of the Asaf Jahi Dynasty also signalled the end of the resistance by the princely states against the merger with the Indian Union. When the Mountbatten Plan was announced on June 3, 1947, the Nizam made known his plans through a "firman" (order) issued on June 11, 1947, that Hyderabad was entitled to assume the status of an independent sovereign state on August 15 and when an Indian Independence Bill was introduced in British Parliament on July 9, the Nizam took serious exception to it, and sent a protest note to Lord Mountbatten accusing the British of "forsaking" an old ally.

As the day of Independence neared, the voice of the Nizam grew shrill and, at one stage, he decided to associate himself directly with Britain rather than be forced to join either India or Pakistan. He also made a futile attempt to send a delegation to U.K. and the U.S. to clinch a defence treaty with them.

At the farewell banquet given to British residents on August 14, 1947, the Nizam declared: "It is still my desire, and the desire of Hyderabad, to remain within the family of nations known as the British Commonwealth."

He further said: "When the British go from India, I shall become an independent sovereign."

The violence and attacks on pro-India forces in Hyderabad on August 15, 1947 in which people celebrating the country's freedom were baton charged and fired upon forced the Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, to express his indignation in the Constituent Assembly on August 29.

Although the Nizam denied any disrespect having been caused to the national flag in the violent incidents on August 15, he said through another "firman" issued on August 27 that on August 15 he had assumed the status of an independent sovereign.

Perturbed over the moves of the Nizam to seek the intervention of the UNO in declaring himself independent of the Indian Union, the increasing attacks by the Razakars, the private army of the Nizam, and the intention of the Nizam to revolt against the Indian Union, the Home Minister, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, ordered the "Police Action" on September 13, 1948.

Exactly after four days and 13 hours, the Nizam announced a ceasefire, even before the Indian Army led by Major-General J.N.Choudhury entered the capital, Hyderabad.

Though the official celebration of the liberation of Hyderabad from Nizam's rule on September 17 in Gulbarga, Bidar, Raichur, and Koppal districts has kicked off a row, the fact that the region was liberated and merged with the Indian Union is a momentous event for those who had to suffer untold misery during the oppressive Nizam's rule.

July 4, 2012

The state government has initiated major reforms in the AP Public Service Commission to fill up a large number of vacant posts. Major reforms proposed include single examination for Group I and Group I-B; the number of attempts by the candidates to take the written examination conducted by APPSC will be on the lines of UPPSC; the creation of a new service called Group I-B; interviews for some gazetted and non-gazetted posts; and setting up of a new computer cell to improve the recruitment process.

Attempts

The number of attempts at written examinations under a recruitment would be restricted as in the case of the UPSC.

Group I-B consists of executive posts in the existing Group II including municipal commissioner's Grade-3, ACTO, deputy tahsildar, sub-registrar of cooperation, junior employment officer, assistant labour officer, extension officer, panchayat raj, and excise sub-inspector. Recruitment to vacant posts will be held every year. For this purpose, a calendar of recruitments shall be approved by APPSC by March 31. Departments should submit the list of anticipated vacancies in the next fina-ncial year by November 30.

Draft DPC proposals of direct recruitees will henceforth be sent to APPSC for concurrence to ensure proper adherence to rules and maintenance of roster points by the departments. The government has assured prompt release of funds on quarterly basis. Earlier, Reforms Committee members P.V. Ramesh, Poonam Malakondaiah G.N. Phani Kumar, B. Venkateswara Rao and R. Damodar — met the Chief Minister and submitted their report.

June 16, 2012

• STRUCTURAL UNEMPLOYMENT: Structural unemployment is caused by a mismatch between the sufficiently skilled workers looking for jobs and the vacancies available. Even though the number of vacancies may be equal to the number of the unemployed, the unemployed workers lack the skills needed for the jobs, or are in the wrong part of the country or world to take the jobs offered. Structural unemployment is a result of the dynamics of the labour market and the fact that these can never be as flexible as, e.g., financial markets.

• SEASONAL UNEMPLOYMENT: Seasonal unemployment results from the fluctuations in demands for labour in certain industries because of the seasonal nature of production. In such industries there is a seasonal pattern in the demand for labor. During the period when the industry is at its peak there is a high degree of seasonal employment, but during the off-peak period there is a high seasonal unemployment. Seasonal unemployment occurs when an occupation is not in demand at certain seasons.

• FRICTIONAL UNEMPLOYMENT: Frictional unemployment occurs when a worker moves from one job to another. While he searches for a job he is experiencing frictional unemployment. This specially applies for new entrants (such as graduating students) and re-entrants (such as former homemakers). Frictional unemployment is always present in an economy. Frictional unemployment exists because both jobs and workers are heterogeneous, and a mismatch can result between the characteristics of supply and demand. Such a mismatch can be related to skills, payment, work-time, location, attitude, taste, and a multitude of other factors.

• CYCLICAL UNEMPLOYMENT: Cyclical or Keynesian unemployment, also known as demand deficit unemployment, rises during economic downturns and falls when the economy improves. Keynesians argue that this type of unemployment occurs when there is inadequate effective Aggregate Demand. This is caused by a business cycle recession, and wages not falling to meet the equilibrium level. This type of unemployment is the most serious one. This arises when demand for most goods and services fall, i.e., in recession. When demand falls, less production is needed and consequently fewer workers are being demanded, in such a case mass unemployment can be expected.

• HIGH POPUALTION GROWTH: The rapid increase in population of our country during the last decade has further worse the unemployment problem in the country. Due to rapidly increasing population of the country, a dangerous situation has arisen in which the magnitude of unemployment goes on increasing during each plan period.

• JOBLESS GROWTH: Although India is a developing country, the rate of growth is inadequate to absorb the entire labour force in the country. The opportunities of employment are not sufficient to absorb the additions in the labour force of the country, which are taking place as result of the rapidly increasing unemployment in India.

• INEFFICIENT AGRICULTURAL AND INDUSTRIAL SECTORS: Industrialisation is not rapid in our country and industrial labour finds few job opportunities. As enough other employment opportunities are not available, agriculture is the principal area of employment in our country. Thus, pressure on land is high, as about 2/3 of the labour force is engaged in agriculture. Land is thus overcrowded and a large part of the work force is underemployed and suffer from disguised unemployment.

• INAPROPRIATE EDUCATION SYSYTEM: After remaining at schools and colleges for a number of years men and women come out in large numbers, having gained neither occupational nor vocational training nor functional literacy from which all future skilled, educated professional, and managerial manpower is drawn.

• INAPPROPRIATE TECHNOLOGY: In India, while capital is a scarce factor, labour is available in abundant quantity. However, not only in industries, but also in agriculture producers are increasingly substituting capital for labour. On account of abundance of labour, this policy is resulting in large unemployment.

• WEAKNESSES IN PLANNING TECHNIQUES: The growth strategy underlying our plans has been found to be faulty. Lack in infrastructure development and poor labour-intensive techniques planning has made unemployment a severe issue in our Indian economy.

• Employment Policy up to the 1980s: Direct measures to eliminate unemployment were not preferred as the apprehension was that they could slow down the growth process by raising consumption expenditure on the other hand, and cutting down the economic surplus on the other. This policy was obviously inadequate to tackle the unemployment problem and as a result, the number of unemployment rose. Hence government decided to concentrate on self employment ventures in various fields farm and non-farm operations.

Such as:-

o Rural development programme

o National rural employment programme

o National scheme of training youth for self employment

o The operation food II dairy project

o Integrated rural development programme

o Rural landless employment guarantee programme

• Employment Strategies during the 1990s: Defining its

employment perspective the Eighth Plan clearly stated, "The employment potential of growth can be raised by readjusting the sectoral composition of output in favour of sector and sub-sector having higher employment elasticity." In certain sectors where technologies are to be upgraded to a higher level of efficiency and international competitiveness, there is little scope for generating additional employment. However, in respect of certain other sectors some flexibility may be available in the choice of technologies and thus it may not be difficult to generate considerable employment.

According to the present estimates, the employment strategy as stated above will enable attainment of the goal of full employment in any case not before 2012 A.D. Therefore, special employment programmes as in the past should be continued to provide short-term employment to unemployed and underemployment among the Poor and the Vulnerable.

• Swaranjayanti Gram Swarozgar Yojana (SGSY) was launched from April 1, 1999 after restructuring the IRDP and allied schemes. It is the only self-employment programme for the rural poor.

• Sampoorna Grameen Rozgar Yojana (SGRY) was launched on September 23, 2001 and the scheme of JGSY and Employment Assurance Scheme was fully integrated with SGRY. It aims at providing additional wage employment in rural areas.

• The Swarana Jayanti Shahari Rozgar Yojana (SJSRY) came into operation from December 1, 1997, subsuming the earlier urban poverty alleviation programmes. It aims to provide gainful employment to the urban unemployed and underemployed poor by encouraging the setting up of self-employment ventures or provision of wage employment.

• Prime Minister's Rozgar Yojana (PMRY) was designed to provide self-employment to more than a million educated unemployed youth by setting up seven lakh micro-enterprises under the Eighth Five Year Plan.

• The National Rural Employed Programme (NREP) was started as a part of the Sixth plan and was continued under the Seventh Plan. It was meant to help that segment of rural population which largely depends on wage employment and has virtually no source of income during the lean agricultural period.

• The Rural Landless Employment Guarantee Programme (RLEGP) was

started on 15th August, 1983, with the objective of expanding employment opportunities for the rural landless, i.e., to provide guarantee to at least one member of the landless household for about 100 days in a year.

• The Integrated Rural Development Programme (IRDP) was launched in 1978-79 and extended all over the country in 1980-81.It was to provide self-employment in a variety of activities like sericulture, animal husbandry etc. in primary sector, handicrafts etc. in secondary sector , and service and business activities in the tertiary sector.

• The Scheme of Training Rural Youth for Self-Employment (TRYSEM) was

initiated in 1979. It aimed at training about 2 lakh rural youth every year to enable them to become self-employed. Jawahar Rozgar Yojana (JRY) was announced in February 1989, it was supposed to provide intensive employment creation in the 120 backward districts. It was later renamed Jawahar Gram Samridhi Yojana (JGSY) whose objective was creation of infrastructure and durable assets at the village level so as to increase opportunities for sustained employment to the rural poor.

• The Employment Assurance Scheme (EAS) aimed at providing 100 days of unskilled manual work on demand to two members of a rural family in the age group 18 to 60 years in the agricultural lean season within the blocks covered under the scheme.

June 7, 2012

Rise of the Marathas

Various factors contributed to the rise of Marathas in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. The physical environment of the Maratha country shaped certain peculiar qualities among the Marathas. The mountainous region and dense forests made them brave soldiers and adopt guerilla tactics. They built a number of forts on the mountains. The spread of the Bhakti movement in Maharashtra inculcated a spirit of religious unity among them. The spiritual leaders like Tukkaram, Ramdas, Vaman Pandit and Eknath fostered social unity. The political unity was conferred by Shivaji. The Marathas held important positions in the administrative and military systems of Deccan Sultanates of Bijapur and Ahmadnagar. There were a number of influential Maratha families such as the Mores and Nimbalkers. But the credit of establishing a powerful Maratha state goes to Shahji Bhonsle and his son Shivaji.

Shivaji (1627-1680):

His Life and Conquests Shivaji was born at Shivner in 1627. His father was Shahji Bhonsle and mother Jija Bai. He inherited the jagir of Poona from his father in 1637. After the death of his guardian, Dadaji Kondadev in 1647, Shivaji assumed full charge of his jagir. Even before that he conquered Raigarh, Kondana and Torna from the ruler of Bijapur. He captured Javli from a Maratha chief, Chanda Rao More. This made him the master of Mavala region. In 1657, he attacked the Bijapur kingdom and captured a number of hill forts in the Konkan region. The Sultan of Bijapur sent Afzal Khan against Shivaji. But Afzal Khan was murdered by Shivaji in 1659 in a daring manner.

Shivaji's military conquests made him a legendary figure in the Maratha region. Many came forward to join his army. The Mughal emperor Aurangazeb was anxiously watching the rise of Maratha power under Shivaji. He sent the Mughal governor of the Deccan, Shaista Khan against Shivaji. Shivaji suffered a defeat at the hands of the Mughal forces and lost Poona. But Shivaji once again made a bold attack on Shaista Khan's military camp at Poona in 1663, killed his son and wounded Khan. This daring attack affected the prestige of Khan and he was recalled by Aurangazeb. In 1664, Shivaji attacked Surat, the chief port of the Mughals and plundered it.

This time Aurangazeb sent Raja Jai Singh of Amber to fight against Shivaji. He made elaborate preparations and succeeded in besieging the Purander fort where Shivaji lodged his family and treasure. Shivaji opened negotiations with Jai Singh and the Treaty of Purander was signed in 1665. According to the treaty, Shivaji had to surrender 23 forts to the Mughals out of 35 forts held by him. The remaining 12 forts were to be left to Shivaji on condition of service and loyalty to Mughal empire. On the other hand, the Mughals recognized the right of Shivaji to hold certain parts of the Bijapur kingdom. As Shivaji asked to exempt him from personal service to the Mughals, his minor son Shambaji was granted a mansab of 5000.

Shivaji visited Agra in 1666 but he was imprisoned there. But, he managed to escape from prison and made military preparations for another four years. Then he renewed his wars against the Mughals. Surat was plundered by him for the second time in 1670. He also captured all his lost territories by his conquests. In 1674 Shivaji crowned himself at Raigarh and assumed the title Chatrapathi. Then he led an expedition into the Carnatic region and captured Ginjee and Vellore. After his return from this expedition, Shivaji died in 1680.

Shivaji's Administration

Shivaji was also a great administrator. He laid the foundations of a sound system of administration. The king was the pivot of the government. He was assisted by a council of ministers called Ashtapradhan. However, each minister was directly responsible to Shivaji.

1. Peshwa – Finance and general administration. Later he became the prime minister.

2. Sar-i-Naubat or Senapati – Military commander, a honorary post.

3. Amatya – Accountant General.

4. Waqenavis – Intelligence, posts and household affairs.

5. Sachiv – Correspondence.

6. Sumanta – Master of ceremonies.

7. Nyayadish – Justice.

8. Panditarao – Charities and religious administration.

Most of the administrative reforms of Shivaji were based on the practices of the Deccan sultanates. For example, Peshwa was the Persian title. The revenue system of Shivaji was based on that of Malik Amber of Ahmadnagar. Lands were measured by using the measuring rod called kathi. Lands were also classified into three categories – paddy fields, garden lands and hilly tracks. He reduced the powers of the existing deshmuks and kulkarnis. He appointed his own revenue officials called karkuns.

Chauth and sardeshmukhi were the taxes collected not in the Maratha kingdom but in the neighbouring territories of the Mughal empire or Deccan sultanates. Chauth was one fourth of the land revenue paid to the Marathas in order to avoid the Maratha raids. Sardeshmukhi was an additional levy of ten percent on those lands which the Marathas claimed hereditary rights.

Shivaji was a man of military genius and his army was well organized. The regular army consisted of about 30000 to 40000 cavalry supervised by havaildars. They were given fixed salaries. There were two divisions in the Maratha cavalry – 1. bargirs, equipped and paid by the state; and 2. silahdars, maintained by the nobles. In the infantry, the Mavli foot soldiers played an important role. Shivaji also maintained a navy.

The forts played an important role in the military operations of the Marathas. By the end of his reign, Shivaji had about 240 forts. Each fort was put under the charge of three officers of equal rank as a precaution against treachery. Shivaji was really a constructive genius and nation-builder. His rise from jagirdar to Chatrapathi was spectacular. He unified the Marathas and remained a great enemy of the Mughal empire. He was a daring soldier and a brilliant administrator.

Successors of Shivaji

There ensued a war of succession after the death of Shivaji between his sons, Shambaji and Rajaram. Shambaji emerged victorious but later he was captured and executed by the Mughals. Rajaram succeeded the throne but the Mughals made him to flee to the Ginjee fort. He died at Satara. He was succeeded by his minor son Shivaji II with his mother Tara Bai as regent. The next ruler was Shahu in whose reign the Peshwas rose to power.

Balaji Viswanath (1713-1720)

Balaji Viswanath began his career as a small revenue official and became Peshwa in 1713. As Peshwa, he made his position the most important and powerful as well as hereditary. He played a crucial role in the civil war and finally made Shahu as the Maratha ruler. He sought the support of all Maratha leaders for Shahu. In 1719, Balaji Viswanath got certain rights from the then Mughal emperor, Farukh Siyar. First, the Mughal emperor recognized Shahu as the Maratha king. Second, he allowed Shahu to collect Chauth and Sardeshmukhi from the six Mughal provinces of the Deccan including the Carnatic and Mysore.

Baji Rao I (1720-1740)

Baji Rao was the eldest son of Balaji Viswanath. He succeeded his father as Peshwa at the age young age of twenty. The Maratha power reached its zenith under him. He initiated the system of confederacy among the Maratha chiefs. Under this system, each Maratha chief was assigned a territory which could be administered autonomously. As a result, many Maratha families became prominent and established their authority in different parts of India. They were the Gaekwad at Baroda, the Bhonsle at Nagpur, the Holkars at Indore, the Scindias at Gwalior, and the Peshwas at Poona.

Balaji Baji Rao (1740-1761)

Balaji Baji Rao succeeded his father as Peshwa at the young age of nineteen. The Maratha king Shahu died in 1749 without issue. His nominated successor Ramraja was imprisoned by the Peshwa Balaji Baji Rao at Satara. The full control of the Maratha kingdom came under the Peshwa. Peshwa entered into an agreement with the Mughal Emperor in 1752. According to it the Peshwa gave assurance to the Mughal Emperor that he would protect the Mughal Empire from internal and external enemies for which the Chauth of the northwest provinces and the total revenue of the Agra and Ajmer provinces would be collected by the Marathas.

Thus when Ahmad Shah Abdali invaded India, it became the responsibility of the Marathas to protect India. The Marathas fought very bravely against Ahmad Shah Abdali in the Third Battle of Panipat in 1761. But they got defeated. Many Maratha leaders and thousands of soldiers died in this battle. Balaji Baji Rao also died on hearing the sad end of this battle. Also, this battle gave a death blow to the Maratha power. Thereafter, the Maratha confederacy weakened due to internal conflicts among the Maratha chiefs.

After the decline of the Mughal Empire, the Marathas emerged a great power in India but they could not succeed in preventing the establishment of British power in India. The important causes for the downfall were that there was lack of unity among the Maratha chiefs like Holkar, Scindia and Bhonsle. Also, the superiority of the British army and fighting methods ultimately won.

June 3, 2012

1. The vital link in the co-operative credit system namely, the Primary Agricultural Co-operative Societies, themselves remain very weak. They are too small in size to be economical and viable; besides too many of them are dormant, existing only on paper.

2. With the expanding credit needs of the rural sector, the commercial banks have come in actively to meet the credit requirements of this sector, and this has aggravated the difficulties of co-operative banks. The theory that cooperative banks would be buoyed up by the competition from other financial institutions does not appear to have worked.

3. Co-operative banks are not doing well in all the states; only a few accountfor a major part of their business. For example, 75 per cent of total deposits mobilised by State C-operative Banks was from only seven states in 1987 Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, and Uttar Pradesh.

4. These banks still rely very heavily on refinancing facilities from the government, the RBI, and NABARD. They have yet not been able to become self-reliant in respect of resources through deposit mobilisation.

5. They suffer from dangerously low or weak quality of loan assets, and from highly unsatisfactory recovery of loans. They suffer from infrastructural weaknesses and structural flaws. They do not look like banks and do not inspire confidence in the potential members, depositors and borrowers.

6. Poor resource base is main constraint of these banks. Relatively low per capita base and less equity base due to non-participations of the members in the financial activities and limited area of operation is becoming a permanent obstacle in the progress of this sector.

7. Poor profit position and burden of huge accumulated losses of several cooperative banks has threatened the very survival of these banks. The amount of cost of management of this sector has adversely affected its profitability.

8. Most of the Co-operative banks are suffering from the lack of professional management. In the deregulated environment and stiff competition in the banking sector, do to lack of the professionalism in carrying out banking activities, the weakness of these banks has become more prominent.

9. Many co-operative banks even now continue to follow age-old system and procedures, which are not conductive in the present technologically driven banking environment. Except some Co-operative banks, technological development in Information Technology or computerized data management is conspicuously absent.

10. There is a lack of proper governance. Corporate Governance has great relevance in the present environment. As there is no formal system of corporate governance in co-operative banks, many banks have become the hot bed of political patronage, unscrupulous financial practice and gross mismanagement.

11. Another problem arises out of the duality of control over them i.e. these banks are organized under dual control of RBI and as well as respective state government. Apart from the intervention of the apex bodies, the Government is also found to exercise control in various ways on these banks.

Government intervention in the management, administration and business operation of co-operative banks has made the institution lose his own distinct character.

12. They suffer from too much officialisation and politicisation. Undue governmental interventions have prevented them from developing steadily as a self-reliant and resilient credit system. Most of them are headed by politicians.

13. They unduly depend on government capital rather than member capital. There is no active participation of their members in their working, which can come about if they work with members' money rather than government largesse.

April 26, 2012

Tuberculosis is caused by a bacteria called Mycobacterium tuberculosis. It usually affects the lungs (pulmonary tuberculosis). Other parts of the body can also be affected (extrapulmonary tuberculosis) such as lymph nodes, kidneys, bones, joints.

Clinical features

The symptoms of pulmonary TB include low-grade fever, night sweats, fatigue, weight loss, a persistent cough and blood in sputum. Some people may not have obvious symptoms.

Mode of transmission

Tuberculosis is spread through the air. When a person with infective pulmonary tuberculosis coughs or sneezes, the bacteria gets into the air and causes disease if a susceptible person inhales it. Effective antibiotic treatment usually shortens the infectious period to within a few weeks.

Incubation period

Symptoms may occur as early as several weeks after infection, or it may occur after many years. An infected person has the greatest risk of developing TB within the first two years after infection.

Management

People with tuberculosis should seek medical treatment as soon as possible. They are prescribed multiple drug therapy for at least six months. In order to eradicate the bacteria, patients should follow their doctors' instruction and complete the course of treatment.

Prevention

1. Maintain good personal and environmental hygiene. 2. Adopt a healthy lifestyle, i.e., have balanced diet, adequate exercise and rest. 3. Keep hands clean and wash hands properly. 4. Wash hands when they are dirtied by respiratory secretions e.g. after sneezing. 5. Cover nose and mouth while sneezing or coughing and dispose of nasal and mouth discharge properly. 6. Seek treatment promptly if symptoms similar to tuberculosis appear, particularly persistently cough for more than one month.

April 25, 2012

Amoebic dysentery is an intestinal infection caused by a parasite called Entamoeba histolytica.

Clinical Features

Infection by Entamoeba histolytica may be asymptomatic. The symptoms of amoebic dysentery include fever, chills, diarrhoea and abdominal pain. Stool may contain blood and/or mucus. Entamoeba histolytica may rarely invade the liver to form an abscess. Less commonly, it spreads to other parts of the body, such as the lungs or brain. Other complications include inflammation of the intestine or rarely perforation.

Mode of Transmission

Transmission of amoebic dysentery occurs mainly by ingestion of faecal contaminated food or water containing the cyst of Entamoeba histolytica. Transmission can also occur sexually through oral-anal contact.

Risk Factors

People who live in institutions and those who travel to developing countries with poor sanitary conditions are at a higher risk of getting the disease.

Incubation Period

The incubation period is variable, and may range from a few days to several months. It is usually 2 to 4 weeks.

Diagnosis

Diagnosis is usually made by microscopic examination of patient's stool specimen for Entamoeba histolytica trophozoites and/or cysts. Presence of red blood cells and white blood cells facilitates the diagnosis of amoebic dysentery.

Treatment

Treatment should include fluid replacement and antibiotics.

Prevention

1. Maintain good personal, food and environmental hygiene. 2. Wash hands properly with soap and water before eating or handling food, and after toilet or changing diapers. 3. Drinking water should be from the mains and preferably boiled. 4. Purchase fresh food from reliable sources. 5. Do not patronize illegal hawkers. 6. Cook food thoroughly. 7. Exclude infected persons and asymptomatic carriers from handling food and from providing care to children, elderly and immunocompromised people. 8. Persons with gastrointestinal symptoms such as diarrhoea should refrain from work/school and seek medical consultation promptly. 9. When traveling to a country with poor sanitary conditions, persons should take the following precautions: * Always wash hands before eating and after going to toilets * Drink only boiled water, or bottled drinks by reputable companies, and pasteurized milk or dairy products * Avoid drinks prepared by ice of unknown origin * Eat only thoroughly cooked food * Avoid peeled fruits and vegetables that are not thoroughly cleaned * Do not patronize illegal hawkers

Although most patients have mild symptoms, such as mild diarrhoea or vomiting, some patients may have severe symptoms with sudden onset of profuse diarrhoea with rice-water like and fishy smelling stool, nausea and vomiting. Without prompt treatment, these patients may die from severe dehydration.

Mode of transmission

Cholera is usually contracted through consumption of food or water contaminated with Vibrio cholerae. Human-to-human transmission rarely happens.

Incubation period

Ranges from a few hours to 5 days, usually 2-3 days.

Management

The mainstay of treatment is timely and adequate rehydration. For mild dehydration, patients may take oral rehydration salts (ORS) fluid. Severe dehydration cases usually require intravenous rehydration to replenish fluid and mineral loss. For severe cases of diarrhoea, antibiotics may be used .

Prevention

Preventive measures are based on good personal, food and environmental hygiene:

1. Personal hygiene

Wash hands properly with soap and water

before eating or handling food

after toilet or changing diapers

after handling garbage

Avoid handling food when having symptoms of vomiting or diarrhoea

2. Food hygiene

Purchase food from reliable sources. Do not patronise illegal hawkers

Handle raw, cooked and ready-to-eat food with separate utensils and store them separately

Ensure thorough cooking of food before consumption

Discard any spoilt food

Clean refrigerator regularly. Maintain the fridge at or below 4°C and freezer at or below -18°C

Supervisors of food premisesshould use water from reliable sources to keep live fish or shellfish. They should also filter and change fish tank water frequently and cleanse the fish tanks regularly

April 21, 2012

Bacillary dysentery is an intestinal infection caused by a group of Shigella bacteria which can be found in human gut.

Clinical features

The illness is characterized by sudden onset of fever, diarrhoea with abdominal cramps and nausea or vomiting. The stool may contain blood and mucus. Mild and asymptomatic illness can occur. Complications include toxic dilatation of large intestine and acute kidney disease.

Mode of transmission

Bacillary dysentery is transmitted directly by faecal material of a patient/carrier or indirectly through contaminated food and water. Infection may occur after consuming a small number of the germs. Therefore, chance of spread among household members or in institutions can be very high. It occurs more commonly amongst young children.

Incubation period

Usually 1 - 3 days, but can be up to 7 days.

Management

Infected persons in institutions should be isolated. They should observe personal hygiene to avoid infecting other persons. Treatments include fluid replacement and antibiotics.

Prevention

1. Keep the premises and kitchen utensils clean. Dispose rubbish properly. 2. Keep hands clean and fingernails trimmed. 3. Wash hands properly with soap and water before eating or handling food, and after toilet or changing diapers. 4. Drinking water should be from the mains and preferably boiled. 5. Purchase fresh food from reliable sources. Do not patronize illegal hawkers. 6. Avoid high-risk food like shellfish, raw food or semi-cooked food. 7. Wear clean washable aprons and caps during food preparation. 8. Clean and wash food thoroughly. Scrub and rinse shellfish in clean water and immerse them in clean water for sometime to allow self-purification. Remove the viscera if appropriate. 9. Store perishable food in refrigerator, well covered. 10. Handle and store raw and cooked food especially seafood separately (upper compartment of the refrigerator for cooked food and lower compartment for raw food) to avoid cross contamination. 11. Clean and defrost refrigerator regularly and keep the temperature at or below 4oC. 12. Cook food thoroughly. 13. Do not handle cooked food with bare hands; wear gloves if necessary. 14. Consume food as soon as it is done. 15. If necessary, refrigerate cooked leftover food and consume as soon as possible. Reheat thoroughly before consumption. Discard any addled food items. 16. Exclude infected persons and asymptomatic carriers from handling food and from providing care to children.

April 18, 2012

In India, the concept of energy as " Shakti " has been at the focus of philosphic, scientific and metaphysical thought from time immemorial. The conventional energy sources like fossil fuels, crude oil, natural gas etc. are dwindling fast. The world stock of non-renewable natural sources indeed have decreased. There is every necessity of going for renewable alternative resources for energy. The energy crisis of 1973 left scientists to accelerate the renewable energy programmes.

The most efficient utilization of these resources comes when they are converted to biomass by appropriate technologies. The non-commercial biomass fuels are the main sources of energy available in the rural areas. The 80% of our population resides in villages are dependent on this non-commercial biomass fuels.

II. Concept of Biomass

The term biomass refers to all organic matter generated through photosynthesis and other biological processes. The ultimate source of this renewable biomass is the inexhaustible solar energy which is captured by plants through photosynthesis. It includes both terrestrial as well as aquatic matter such as wood, herbaceous plants, algae, aquatic plants and residues, like straw, husks, corncobs, cow dung, saw-dust, wood shavings and other wastes like disposable garbage, night soil, sewage solids, industrial refuse etc. In spite of all these biomass resources available in India, they are not being properly utilized. In fact, a large amount of it is disposed off by burning in open fields causing serious air pollution.

In order to utilise these resources properly, biomass should be converted to energy which can meet a sizeable percentage of the country's demands for fuel as well as energy. Three main approaches can be adopted for generation and proper utilization.

2. Collection of urban and industrial wastes as fuel in boilers and as a feedstock for producing methane and some liquid fuels.

3. Growth of some specific energy plants for use as energy feed stock and cultivation of commercial forestry, aquatic and marine plants for different products.

By a number of processes, the collected wastes can be converted into solid, liquid and gaseous fuels. The technologies include thermal, thermo-chemical and bio-chemical conversions. The actual processes in these technologies are combustion, pyrolysis, gasification, alcoholic fermentation, liquefaction etc.

The main products of conversion technologies are energy (thermal, steam, electricity), solid fuels (charcoal, combustibles) and synthetic fuels (methanol, methane, hydrogen gas etc.). These can be used for different purposes like cooking, lighting, heating, water pumping, electricity generation and as industrial and transport fuels.

III. Types of Biomass

Depending on the nature and availability of these wastes and organic residues they can be utilized in different manners as described here.

1. Fuel biomass

By some processes and procedures, biomass products like fuel gas, liquid fuels, gaseous fuels etc. are obtained, which are given here

a. Biomass from plants or animal origin are directly burnt for cooking and other purposes. Municipal and sewage wastes, industrial wastes and agricultural wastes are converted to energy which can meet the demand for energy in rural sector.

c. Ethanol, which is used as a liquid fuel can be produced from carbohydrates by alcoholic fermentation.

d. When wood and agricultural residues are heated in the absence of air (pyrolysis), charcoal is the resultant product which can be used as a fuel more advantageously than wood.

e. By the process of gasification, gas is evolved which can be used as a fuel for engines.

f. Biogas, which is popular in rural areas is produced by anaerobic fermentation from farm wastes.

2. Feed biomass

Conventionally, crop residues are used as cattle-feed. However, some of them with high percentage of lignin or non-digestible constituents need certain treatments such as soaking in water, alkali/alcohol to make their use as a fuel. The oil-cakes of various crop seed like cotton, rubber, tobacco etc. can also be used as a feed after extraction of toxic materials.

3. Organic fertilizer biomass

Dry fermented slurry can be used as a direct organic fertilizer for crop land.

4.Fibre biomass

The fibrous agricultural wastes and residues are being profitably utilised for making pulp for cheap grade paper.

5.Chemical biomass

Highly siliconous agricultural residues like rice husk and rice straw can be converted into useful chemicals like morphous silicon, silicate products and solar grade silicon. Furfural an another chemical can be produced from biogases, cotton seed hulls, corn-cobs, flax fibres, oat hulls etc., which is used as a solvent for some petroleum products.

Tides are caused through a combination of forces created by the gravitational pull of the sun and the moon, and the rotation of the earth. Energy naturally present in water bodies or in their movement can be used for generation of electricity. This is achieved broadly in the following ways:u Tidal energy: Using the "head" (height difference) between low and high tides to create a fall similar to that in a conventional hydropower project. This uses the potential energy of the water body.u Wave energy: Using the kinetic (dynamic) energy of the waves to rotate an underwater power turbine and generate electricity thereon. This can be loosely described as an underwater wind farm.u Thermal energy: Using the thermal energy of oceans to generate electricity. This is similar to geothermal power generation where heat trapped in the earth surface is converted into electrical energy. The tidal energy method broadly works as follows. When a tide comes onto the shore, it is trapped in reservoirs constructed behind barrages (dams). When the tide drops, this collected water is released and is then used like in a regular hydropower project. For the tidal energy method to work effectively, the tidal difference (difference in the height of the high and low tides) should be at least 4m (around 13 ft) Tidal energy projects are extremely site specific. The quality of the topography of the basin also needs to facilitate civil construction of the power plant. Tidal energy is a clean mechanism and does not involve the use of fossil fuels. However, environmental concerns exist mainly to do with higher silt formation at the shore (due to preventing tides from reaching the shore and washing away silt) and disruption to marine life near the tidal basin. Wave energy projects have lesser ecological impact than tidal wave energy projects. In terms of reliability, tidal energy projects are believed to be more predictable than those harnessing solar or wind energy, since occurrences of tides are fully predictable.

Indian context India being surrounded by sea on three sides has a high potential to harness tidal energy. The three most potential locations in this regard are Gulf of Cambay, Gulf of Kutch (west coast) and Ganges Delta, Sunderbans, West Bengal (east coast). The total potential of tidal energy in India is estimated at 8,000 mw with Gulf of Cambay accounting for over 90 per cent.

Ocean wave energy is captured directly from surface waves or from pressure fluctuations below the surface. Wave power systems convert the motion of the waves into usable mechanical energy which in lump can be used to generate electricity. Waves are caused by wind blowing on the surface of the water. Whereas tidal power relies on the mass movement of the water body, waves act as a carrier for kinetic energy generated by the wind

Potential of Wave energy in India

The potential along the 6000 Km of coast is about 40,000 MW. This energy is however less intensive than what is available in more northern and southern latitudes. In India the research and development activity for exploring wave energy started at the Ocean Engineering Centre, Indian Institute of Technology, Madras in 1982. Primary estimates indicate that the annual wave energy potential along the Indian coast is between 5 MW to 15 MW per meter, thus a theoretical potential for a coast line of nearly 6000 KW works out to 40000-60000 MW approximately. However, the realistic and economical potential is likely to be considerably less.

Ocean Thermal Energy

The main objective of ocean thermal energy or Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion (OTEC) is to turn the solar energy trapped by the ocean into usable energy. OTEC systems use the ocean's natural thermal gradient"the fact that the ocean's layers of water have different temperatures to drive a power-producing cycle. As long as the temperature between the warm surface water and the cold deep water differs by about 20°C (36°F), an OTEC system can produce a significant amount of power.

Potential[x]

OTEC has a potential installed capacity of 180,000 MW in India.

Current OTEC Projects in India

Status

Location

Installed Capacity

Prototype

"Sagar Shakthi"35km off Tiruchendur coast

1 MW

Barriers

OTEC-produced electricity at present would cost more than electricity generated from fossil fuels at their current costs.

OTEC plants must be located where a difference of about 40 degrees Fahrenheit occurs year round.

Ocean depths must be available fairly close to shore-based facilities for economic operation.

Construction of OTEC plants and laying pipes in coastal waters may cause localized damage to reefs and near-shore marine ecosystems

April 17, 2012

The framing fathers of the Indian Constitution had, keeping in view the histori­cal, administrative, economic and regional need of the country adopted a federal polity for its gov­ernance. It fulfilled almost all the conditions required for the system. One of the essential features of a federal polity is the distribution of powers between the Centre and the States through the Constitution and not by any other means. The Con­stitution of India provides the scheme of the Central-State rela­tions quite in detail in two parts -Part XI, Chapter I explains legisla­tive relations and Chapter II ad­ministrative relations but financial relations are contained in the Part XII of the Constitution. In the scheme of distribution of legisla­tive powers, it has largely adopted i the method followed by the Gov- : erhment of India Act 1935 which : was on the pattern of the Cana- ■dian system, and divides the pow- j ers between the Union and the states in three lists - the Union List, the State List and the Concurrent List: The Union List: It consists of 97 subjects of national importance i.e. Defence, Foreign Affairs, Rail­ways, Airways etc. It is the longest of the three and under Art 246 Par­liament has exclusive power to make laws with respect to any of the matters enumerated in this list. In the course of the working of this scheme some amendments have been incorpo­rated in it in the form of addition or deletion that are as follows:

•Entry 2A was inserted by the Constitution (Forty-second Amendment) Act, 1976. It re­lates to the deployment of any armed force in any state in aid of the civil power.

•Entry 92A inserted concerning taxes on the sale or purchase of goods other than newspa­pers in the course of inter-state trade or commerce. It was in­ serted by the Constitution (Sixth Amendment) Act, 1956.

•Entry 92B inserted taxes on the consignment of goods. It was inserted by the Constitution (46th Amendment) Act, 1982.

Thus to be brief 3 new entries were added and one was deleted making it a total of 99 instead of 97. Since serial numbers are not affected by amendment, it is still 97. Over and above some entries in this list are amended. For ex­ample, Entry No 63 concerning Uni­versity of Delhi declaring it to be an institution of national impor­tance was amended by 32nd Amendment Act 1973, Entry 67 concerning historical monument by 7th Amendment Act 1956, Entry 78concerning High Courts by 15th Amendment Act 1963, and Entry 79again concerning High Courtsby 7th Amendment Act, 1956.

The State List: It consists of 66 entries on which the state leg­islature has been given the exclu­sive powers to make laws under Art 246 (3) These entries are of local importance, such as public

order and police, local government public health and sanitation, ag­riculture etc. Like Union list this has also been amended as per detail given below:

This we find that in the State list 5 entries have been deleted and 7 entries amended/modified but no new item was added to it.

The Concurrent List : It con­sists of 47 subjects such as crimi­nal law, transfer of property, mar­riage divorce, etc. Since the sub­jects are of common interest for both the Union and State Gov­ernment, both of them can make laws on any subject mentioned in this list. But in case of conflict

between the Union and the State Law the Union law will prevail as 'per Art 254.

This list has also been amended ; several times as per detail given below:

Addition of Entries: -

1.Entry 11A - Administration of justice.

2.Entry 17A - Forests

3.Entry 17B - Protection of wild animals.

4.Entry 20A -Population

5.Entry 33A - Weights and measures These entries were inserted by (42nd Amendment) Act 1976 at­one stroke and the following en­tries were amended as per the detail:

1.Entry 25 (Educate) by (42nd Amendment) Act 1976

2.Entry 33 (Trade and Commerce) (3rd Amendment) Act 1954

3.Entry 40 (Archaeological Sites) by (7th Amendment) Act 1956

4.Entry 42 (Property) by (7th Amendment) Act 1956Thus we find that in this list 5 new items were added and 4 were amended or modified, but no entry was not deleted.

Residuary Powers : As in Canada, the residuary powers of legislation are vested in the Union ; under Art 248. It implies the power of making laws and imposition of any tax not mentioned in ei ther of the state or concurrent lists (Entry No 97th of the Union List). There is one exception in this case. The State of Jammu and Kash­mir enjoys special status and in case of residuary powers it has an exclusive jurisdiction.

Generally the law making powers for the residuary item are vested in the states in a federal set up such as USA, Switzerland and Australia but India makes a de­parture from this practice. In the initial stages of the framing of

Constitution, it was decided to leave the residuary powers with the states. But after the partition of the coun­try the approach towards federal­ism was changed. Then it was decided to have a strong Centre and this was why the residuary powers were given to the Centre.

All the three lists are detailed in Scheduled VII of the Constitu­tion and addition, deletion or modification in any of the lists can be done by adopting the pro­cedure as provided in the Consti­tution under Article 368. This method has been applied many a time for the purpose of any change in any of the list as we have noted above. Over and above the Con­stitution permits the Parliament to make laws on any matter in the state list without amending the Constitution either by following a particular procedure or under certain circumstances as per de­tail given below: -

(a) In National Interest : Art 249 provides that the Rajya Sabha can pass a resolution supported by not less than two-thirds ma­jority of members present and voting, declaring that in the na­tional interest Parliament should make laws with respect to any matter enumerated in the state list, as speci­fied in the resolution, for the whole or any part of the territory of India for a maximum of one year at a time. However, the Rajya Sabha can repeat this resolution for any number of times but not for all time to come. Basically it is a tem­porary position. However, such a law made by the Parliament shall remain in force for 6 months only after the expiry of the resolution. This Article has been used only once so far. In 1950 the Parlia­ment resolved to take powers with respect to Trade and Commerce (Entries 26 and 27 of State list) B

(b)During a Proclamation of Emergency : Art 250 says that the Parliament shall have the powerto make a law on any item of the State list when a proclamation of Emergency is in operation underNational Emergency (Art 352) or Financial Emergency (Art 360) and to any State under President's Rule(Art 356). But such a law of the Centre shall cease to have its ef­fect after 6 months of the expiryof the Proclamation of Emergency, though the Centre may repeal, or revoke it even earlier. Since thecountry has remained under Na­tional Emergency between 1962- 68 and again between 1971-77 andthe States under President's Rule for more than 100 times, the Paliament has enhanced its sphereof law making during this period. There is no such specific provi­sion in countries of federal set upsuch as, USA, Canada and Aus­tralia whereby the distribution of powers between the Centres andthe states is completely upset dur­ing Emergency. Framing fathers of Indian Constitution have fol­lowed this provision from the Government of India Act 1935. (c)Legislation by Consent of State : Art 252 provides that if the Legislature of two or more states pass a resolution and request the Centre to make a law on a certain item of the State list then it shall be lawful for the Parlia­ment to make a law regulating that matter. Such a law shall apply tothe States that made such a request, though any other State mayadopt it by passing such a resolution subsequently. The law thus enacted can only be amended orrepealed by the Act of Parliament. This provisions of the Constitu­tion was applied for the first timein 1953 and again in 1955 when some of State legislatures authorized

Parliament to pass the Estate Duty Act and the Prize Competition Act respectively for the concerned states.

(d)Legislation to Implement International Agreement : Art 253 empowers the Parliament tomake any law for the whole or any part of the country for imple­menting any treaty, and agree­ment to fulfil an international obligation even though such law relates to any of the subject ofthe State list.

(e)Legislation with PriorSanction of the President: There are certain matters which havebeen mentioned in the state list, yet no Bill about them can be moved in the State Legislaturewithout the prior sanction of the Parliament (Art 304). For example trade and commerce withinthe state list belongs to this category. (Entry 26).

(0 Reservation of Bills for the Consideration of the Presi­dent : Art 200 of the Constitu­tion says that the Governor of a state has the power to reserve a Bill passed by the State Legislature for the consideration of the Presi­dent of India which in the opin­ion of the Governor would, if it became law, derogate mainly from the powers of the High Court . The President under Art 201 shall have the power to give his assent to such a bill, return it to the State for reconsideration on the basis of his recommendation. In such a situ­ation the State legislature must re-pass that bill within a period of next six months, if it so desires and then it shall be reserved again by the Governor for the reconsidera­tion of the President who shall have the power to give his assent or withhold it or to keep it in abey­ance for any length of time. It means the President in not bound to give his assent to such a Bill unless the suggestions made by him have been incorporated in the Bill. This was done in the case of the Kerala Edu­cation Bill (1959), M.P. Panchayat Bill (1960), and Industrial Dispute West Bengal Bill (1969).after studying the Legislative Scheme of Centre - State relations one thing does come to the sur­face that the framers of the Con­stitution have dealt with this sub­ject quite in detail. The Constitu­tion provides the framework both for usual and unusual circum­stances. Over and above in case of any need there are provisions to modify it through the proce­dure of the Constitution under Art. 268 or even otherwise by just fulfilling certain conditions. Dur­ing the 50 years of working of the Constitution, several times eye­brows have been raised about its being tilted towards the Centre but by and large the position appears to be satisfactory. The Sarkaria Commission has also endorsed this view when it re­marked that there is no need for drastic changes in the existing provisions of the Constitution. The scheme has done reasonably well and has withstood the stresses and strains of time. Let's hope for the best.